San Francisco Named America's Most Sustainable City

The nonprofit SustainLane has released the results of a study ranking 25 U.S. cities based on performance in 12 sustainability categories: transportation, air quality, tap-water quality, LEED^® buildings, food and agriculture, zoning, land use, solid-waste diversion rate, land-use planning, city innovation, energy and climate, and knowledge base. San Francisco and Portland, Oregon, in a virtual tie, led the pack by a wide margin. Bringing up the rear were Detroit and, markedly worse, Houston. “We don’t mind sharing what we know and what we’ve learned, but let’s throw down a green gauntlet,” says Portland Mayor Tom Potter, encouraging friendly competition. To compare scores and learn about the methodology behind them, visit www.sustainlane.org.